Omega-3 phospholipid DHA and supplementation | Rhonda Patrick
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The Omega-3 Supplementation Guide
A blueprint for choosing the right fish oil supplement — filled with specific recommendations, guidelines for interpreting testing data, and dosage protocols.
Docosahexaenoic acid (DHA), an essential omega-3 fatty acid, promotes health and development of the brain. DHA crosses the blood-brain barrier either by passive diffusion or active transport. Passive diffusion declines with age, following a traumatic brain injury, or in people with the APOE4 gene. The phospholipid form of DHA, abundant in fish roe, directs DHA into the brain via active transport, thus bypassing the reliance on passive diffusion. In this clip, Dr. Rhonda Patrick discusses DHA bioavailability and describes her personal DHA regimen, which includes dietary and supplemental sources of omega-3 fatty acids.
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I hear from Dr. Rhonda Patrick that phospholipid DHA is critical to people with at least APOE4. BUT, I can not find but one supplier and their product smells rancid. The Omega EPA DHA Supplement Manf.xls does not tell us which are in phospholipid form. HELP!!!
Hi, dgrare! If you’re still searching, there are a few phospholipid options from which to choose. Rhonda recommends one called Pure Encapsulations Liposomal Glutathione and, I believe, takes it herself. It’s available on Amazon. I take this one by Thorne (another brand Rhonda seems to trust): Thorne Research Phosphatidyl Choline - also available on Amazon. Whatever you choose, and if you’re supplementing your DHA, make sure you DO take a phospholipid with those DHA supplements. I’m an e4/e4 and I fully subscribe to Rhonda’s theory that our e4 brains don’t make beneficial use of DHA supplementation like the other ApoE allele combinations do, and that we do much better by eating fish, because no current supplements other than krill oil contain DHA AND phospholipids other than krill oil supplements. However, if you only supplement via krill oil, you’ll be taking tons of those capsules per day to reach the current recommended 2,000+ DHA mgs. to ward off LOAD for e4s because there’s very little DHA in one krill oil capsule. Also, Rhonda recommends eating salmon roe over other kinds of fish…and, per usual, IMHO she’s spot on. :D I think salmon roe has something like 327 mgs. of DHA per one dry ounce and, of course because it’s fish, you’re getting the phospholipids…but keep in mind (1) you have to purchase QUALITY salmon roe and (2) quality salmon roe is fairly pricey. And some people simply don’t like the taste or the taste of fish generally. I hope this above info helps. Good luck, take good care, and stay safe out there! <3 :D